Who is playing
Denver Nuggets @ New Orleans Pelicans
Current records: Denver 14-11, New Orleans 5-24
How to watch
- When: Sunday, December 22, 2024 at 7 pm ET
- Where: Smoothie King Center – New Orleans, Louisiana
- TV: Altitude sports 2
- Continue: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try it for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket cost: $3.99
What to know
The Nuggets will play the full four quarters on Sunday, but are expected to have everything figured out well before then. Their journey will continue as they take on the New Orleans Pelicans at 7:00 pm ET at the Smoothie King Center. The Nuggets strut around with some offensive muscle, as they have averaged 119.4 points per game this season.
The Nuggets will likely come into the game focusing on the second half, which is when things took a turn for the worse against the Trail Blazers on Thursday. The Nuggets lost 126-124 to the Trail Blazers on a last-minute layup by Anfernee Simons. The close matchup was even more heartbreaking for Denver, which nearly overcame a 17-point deficit.
The Nuggets’ loss came despite quality play from Nikola Jokic, who went 13 of 18 for 34 points, eight assists and five rebounds. In addition, Jokic also made four three-pointers, the most since October. Jamal Murray was another key player, nearly posting a double-double with 24 points and nine assists.
Even though they lost, the Nuggets worked as a unit and finished the game with 34 assists (ranked first in assists per game overall). They easily outscored their opponents in that department, as the Trail Blazers only recorded 29.
Meanwhile, the Pelicans’ recent slump got a little tougher on Saturday after their sixth straight loss. They fell 104-93 to the Knicks. New Orleans led 62-48 in the third but could not maintain the lead.
Denver moved to 14-11 with that loss, which also ended its three-game winning streak. As for New Orleans, their loss dropped their record to 5-24.
Keep an eye on the goal in Sunday’s game: the Nuggets have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 38.3% of their three-pointers per game. It’s a different story for the Pelicans, however, as they have only made 33.3% of their three-pointers this season. Given the Nuggets’ considerable advantage in that area, the Pelicans will need to find a way to close that gap.
The Nuggets came up short against the Pelicans in their previous meeting in November, falling 101-94. Can the Nuggets avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We will know very soon.
Odd
Denver is a heavy 9.5-point favorite against New Orleans, according to the latest report. NBA Odds.
The line has shifted a bit towards the Nuggets, as the game opened with the Nuggets as 8-point favorites.
The over/under is 232 points.
See NBA selections for every game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get Picks Now.
History of the series
New Orleans and Denver have five wins in their last 10 games.
- November 15, 2024: New Orleans 101 vs. Denver 94
- January 12, 2024: Denver 125 vs. New Orleans 113
- November 17, 2023: New Orleans 115 vs. Denver 110
- November 6, 2023: Denver 134 vs. New Orleans 116
- March 30, 2023: New Orleans 107 vs. Denver 88
- January 31, 2023: Denver 122 vs. New Orleans 113
- January 24, 2023: Denver 99 vs. New Orleans 98
- December 4, 2022: New Orleans 121 vs. Denver 106
- March 6, 2022: Denver 138 vs. New Orleans 130
- February 4, 2022 – New Orleans 113 vs. Denver 105
